The Opelousas courier., 1887-07-16
A PUT UP JOB.
A Man Who Fell Overheard
For a Livelihood.
The Device By Which a Couple Made
Money on Southern Steamboats,,

We left Memphis by steamer at about
8 o'clock in the evening, writes NJ. Quad
in the Detroit Free Press, and among
the deck passengers Noticed a couple,
man and wife, who gazed around as if
they had never seen a steamboat before.
They had an old coffee sack with some
clothing in it, but no other baggage.
They moved about IN a timid way, and
both seemed much afraid of the water.
The boat had not gone five miles down
the river, and the large number of pas
sengers had not yet settled down, when
there was an unearthly Shrek, followed
by the cry of ''man oyerboardI' The
boat was stopped and her wheels backed
and after two or three minutes it was
learned that n of the couple ! have
mentioned, the husband, had fallen
overheard. The woman "took on" in
the widest manner, crying and moaning
and wringing her hands, and when
asked how it happened, she replied:
'He just dun fell over-fell over
fell over!''
By IT, at time it was useless to think
of lowering a boat. There was q swift
current running, and as the man had
not cried out there could be no doubt
of his being drowned. Every ono pitied
the woman, of course, and when some
body took off his hat and dropped a S.
bill into it, it was a ego" all around. A
hundred dollars was raised for her in Is
minutes, and she went ashore at the first
landing made by the boat, Juggling the
bag of clothes with her. l went down
as far as fernando, Miss, and stoppe'
off there for two days, taking a second
steamer down on the third night from
the, above occurrence. When / went
down to the levce I saw q couple with
an old sack between 'em who rem nded
me of the pair on the boat, andI also
saw them come aboard. The resemblance
astonished me, but it had to 60 for a
coincidence.
The steamer pulled out about 10
o'clock, and had not been under way
half an hour when there was q loud
shrek, followed by the cry OF, "Man
overheard p 1t was a repetition of what
Ihave related before, except that some
of the passengers had gone to bed, and
the shake purse didn't countup over $40.
The hat was passed to me, but I declined
to chip. The ''recent and grief stricken
widow left the boat at the first land
ing, and l went to bed with the feeling
that curious condolences were mighty
thick on the Mississippi river. ! left the
boat at Helena, made a three days stay,
and was ready to take another boat on
the down trip when Iran across that
self-same couple at the levee, waiting for
the same boat. After some minutes
spent in solemn reflection I walked up to
them and said to the man:
"Come, now, this is a square deal, and
give nothlng away. I've seen you
drowned twice, and I've seen this wild
owl go ashore with q broken heart the
same number of times. Tell me how
you play it and I'll give you a w."
Lets see the money"
handed it over and he slowed it
away in his pocket and then replied:
"Pve got Or a rubber life-preserver,
under my clothes, as you see, and I gen.
orally make shore within a couple of
miles. Stranger, don't give it away.
We are poor but honest people"
Isolemnly agreed that | wouldn't, but
l think they rather mistrusted me, for
they waited over to catch a boat next